so this 71 Hemi cuda is a rebody huh?

[torredcuda]

I'll take this a step farther. The original point of the VIN was to identify a specific car, to make it easier to identify one that was stolen. That number and all its associated numbers have become a holy grail for many, and the primary reason is money, i.e., how much income selling a car can generate. If this were not the case, then instead of rebodying any vehicle, people would go get a state issued VIN and not worry about it. It's not the cars, it's not driving the cars, owning the cars or keeping the cars alive. It's the money.

I disagree that it is always about the money,many guys restore a car knowing that they have way more into it than they could sell it for.Yes some only see $$$ but some guys just like the fact they have an original numbers matching piece of history.

[ChallengerHK]

I disagree that it is always about the money,many guys restore a car knowing that they have way more into it than they could sell it for.Yes some only see $$$ but some guys just like the fact they have an original numbers matching piece of history.

I agree that there are people doing this who respect the cars and want to see them preserved. But what I hear far more often is a discussion that goes like this: "What's the VIN and the fender tag? What's the price? I don't think it'll turn a profit."

[ragtopdodge]

I think if the front clip is there, it's not  really a re-body.

Re-body is swapping VINS, rad support, and cowl on another car.  This one, you're attaching a rear clip.

If you got prosthetic legs, are you a re-body?

[msbaugh]

I think if the front clip is there, it's not  really a re-body.

Re-body is swapping VINS, rad support, and cowl on another car.  This one, you're attaching a rear clip.

If you got prosthetic legs, are you a re-body?

  good point there!! I saw a guy on the tv run in the Olympics this year with prosthetic legs. I'd say he was as legit as they come!

[7071 challenger]

But what makes the metal more important than the rest of the car?A car can be missing everything that bolts on and no one calls it a bogus car but start replacing too much metal and people scream rebody,I don`t get it. 

I agree with you 100%. I mean, you inspect the car out and think: ''No, this one needs more than 50% of the sheet metal, so it doesn't deserve to be restored, let's crush it..."  Sounds ridiculous to me.

[torredcuda]

How about this one?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/PAIR-1970-CUDAS-TRUE-AAR-CUDA-2-BUILD-SHEETS-ALL-FENDER-TAGS-2-TITLES-/320991401302?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item4abc941556
A completely dismantled real AAR with all the numbers,fender tag,biuldsheets and door sticker but crushed shell-rebody or resto?

[Cuda416]

But what makes the metal more important than the rest of the car?A car can be missing everything that bolts on and no one calls it a bogus car but start replacing too much metal and people scream rebody,I don`t get it. 

Think of it this way. When I put on a new pair of jeans today, it doesn't change what makes up "Me" just what's attached to me. If I get a hip or a knee replacement, now "I" am fundamentally different.

This is an interesting topic to be sure. I just talked to a guy at work who says he is going to go buy a 68 Rustang fastback just for the vin so he can put it on a dynacorn body. I said, whao dude, that's not legal. He claims FORD authorizes DC bodies as vin level replacement stuff.

Not sure if I believe him. Not that he's lying but people will believe what they want to. That's the other part of the problem.

-C

[ChallengerHK]

Ford may authorize it, but I think the DMV takes a different view.

[Cuda416]

Ford may authorize it, but I think the DMV takes a different view.

 

Ha, that's a great point.

[Challenger6pak]

I personally don't worry about it.  Using this 71 as an example, there are only 14 original VINs.   The more original the car is that surrounds the VIN, the more value the car should have.  People seem to freak out about the original Cuda or R/T VINs and rebodies.  There are only so many of VINs and that is it. You cannot tell a correct restoration from a correct rebody.

[ragtopdodge]

How about this one?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/PAIR-1970-CUDAS-TRUE-AAR-CUDA-2-BUILD-SHEETS-ALL-FENDER-TAGS-2-TITLES-/320991401302?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item4abc941556
A completely dismantled real AAR with all the numbers,fender tag,biuldsheets and door sticker but crushed shell-rebody or resto?

Pretty brazen I must say.  Especially posting the full VIN like that.

[06Daytona]

The way I see it with my car is it's a custom because it's got a 72 VIN but looks like a 71.
If  I had replaced all my sheet metal with 72 sheet metal it would have been a restoration.
If I'd bought the 71 340 4 speed VIN and fender tags I was offered for 500 bucks and put it on my car that would have been a rebody.
I look at it that way because I'd be  removing the VIN from a 318 car and  defrauding the next person into thinking it's something it isn't. 

[joelson6]

i always thought that the metal IS what makes up the car. plus everything else that goes into it. nose/grill, suspension, wheels/tires, seats, wiring, glass, engine/trans/rear, bumpers, exhaust, etc, etc. especially the VIN and Title. parts fail and have to be replaced (on EVERYTHING mechanical), that doesn't mean it no longer the original car.

many people have taken a car and stripped it out and modified it to run oval track.  now, is it no longer the car you started with? technically, it is. your just modifying it to your liking. restoration would be this only in the opposite direction. people have been modifying cars to their liking since the beginning of the automobile. chevy owners are probably the biggest offenders of this. how many camaros or chevelles do you see with SS emblems on them that don't belong there. most likely every one.

the bottom like here is, it's gonna matter or not matter to the person who has the briefcase full of money looking to buy that car. everything else being said is just hot air.

the only wrench in the whole thing is................... if the seller is claiming the car IS something it IS NOT. that's fraud.


after all this typing, not sure if i got my point across.............i'm posting it anyway

[ChallengerHK]

That's comparing apples and oranges, i.e., souls and identities.

A person with a heart transplant does not become another person. But a person with a new social security number can become a different "person".

For the record, I have no problem believing that a car has a soul. My car is a faithful friend. And it will be my car regardless of what VIN is attached to it. But the definition of rebodying has more to do with the government definition of the car's identity, and far less to do with the car's spirit.

[1970 RT Challenger 1970]

I don't even want to worry about the small technicalities.

I just want to drive that car, do a burnout, a donut, and drive it in -40F with the top down!